Past Secretes
by Enchanted99
Summary: A series of one-shot explaining things about the girls past. answering some questions like why was Cleo afraid of the water... inspired and loosely based off of Tali NCIS-Gleek fan's story Reveal. R&R. (slighter darker , guess you could, say than my other writings.) We all have secretes...
1. Fear

Past Secretes

**_A/N: I know this story was an option on a poll and since it got a vote I decide to start writing it know cause it's short and won't take me that long to write. This story is inspire by and loosely based on Tali NCIS-Gleek Fan's revealed. If you haven't read it, I highly suggest you do. So first up we have Cleo age 7 (Her mom is pregnant with Kim) Sorry if I messed up the time line._**

"Hurry!" Cleo says wanting he friends to move faster.

"We'll be there in a minute!" a seven year old Emma and Lewis shout back. Cleo runs taking off into the waves. She has a great time at the beach with her friends.

* * *

Noon the next day

"Daddy please." Cleo begs giving her dad the puppy dog eyes.

"No, it's too dangerous." Her Dad tells her for the thousandth time.

"But Daddy, I want to see your boat." Cleo persist. She loves the idea of working in the sea all day.

"Listen to your father." Cleo's mum tells her.

"Mum, Daddy please just this once I won't ask ever again." Cleo says giving her parents the puppy god eyes, pouty lip, and the innocent voice. HEr parents couldn't resist.

"Okay just this once. Then you have to wait 'til you're nine years old." Her dad said. Cleo squeals and jumps excitedly.

"THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!" She screams at the top of her lungs and gives each of her parents a hug and a kiss.

* * *

Later on the boat.

Cleo's dad is piloting the boat while her mum watches her.

"Be careful pumpkin. We didn't want you to get hurt." He dad warns from inside the boat.

"I will Daddy!" She yells back.

"Cleo be careful!" Her mum warns her as she tries to catch up the an overly excited seven year old.

Cleo watches the fish swim by as the boat sails along the ocean.

"Look mum!" Cleo says pointing to a sea turtle. She leans in to get a closer look. Her mom reaches for her arm but is a second too late.

"MUMMY! DADDY!" Cleo screams as she falls off.

"DON STOP THE BOAT!" She screams the boat comes to a stop.

Cleo falls head first into the ocean. She tries to open her eyes but the salt water stings them; she barely mange to take a breath before she fell. She tries swimming but it was to much for the little girl. Her strength was waning as well as her oxygen. She couldn't hold her breath any more. Her lungs filled with water as she blacked out...

* * *

She woke up in the hospital a few hours later. Her parent were shaken and guilt ridden.

"Cleo baby I"m so sorry." Her parents said at the same time.

"What happened?" She asks confused. "Why am I here?" The doctor walks in and asks to speak to the parents. He says that a she brain mostly suppressed and will suppress the memory of such a traumatic experience so early, and it's best that its stays that way; it would save her from having the mental trauma. So they decide to say that she feel off her bike and hit her head. She believed the lie. The doctor said she my have a sub concision fear of water due to the experience. And he was right. Eventually her parents did come clean about lying to her. She took it okay; although she slightly resent them for keeping it from her.

Cleo never told anyone else, not even her best friend and boy friend. It was her secrete that she would take to the grave.

_**A/N: So love it hate it let me know next up is… Emma or Rikki you choose or I will, **_**_which ever comes first._**


	2. Goodbye

_**A/N: Rikki's turn… she's 11. P.S. I urge every one to check out/take part in the my poll that's on my profile. And I'd like to give a big thanks MissKatnissSwift for helping me with this one!**_

* * *

Rikki was always extremely close to her mom. One day when they went out together. It was familiar and unusual because although they went shopping Rikki's mum let her get anything she wanted, almost like the rule of saving money went out the window. Now her family wasn't extremely poor nor extremely wealthy. The were a sort of lower average, enough to survive and get some special thing but only on occasions. This day wasn't one of them, but Rikki didn't question. She loved spending the extra time with her mum. They splurged on a small silver necklace that has a red heart charm. Later her mom let her pick what ever restaurant she wanted.

Rikki never questioned this day or how her mum would always tell her 'I love you' even more so than usual or how her mum gave her a kiss and a long hug before she sent her to bed. Only later did she realize what that meant.

* * *

That night Rikki was sound asleep only to be woken by the sound of her parents arguing.

"Do you realize how much money we've lost?!" Her dad screams.

"Well I want Rikki to have a good childhood! I care more about her than the money unlike you!" Her mom retorted. He dad was seething with anger.

"How could you think that I don't care about my own daughter?!" He shrieked. " I love her more than anything, but how can we take care of her if we don't even have them money to take care of ourselves?!" Her dad said finally calming down.

"We'll make through." Her mom says trying reassure him. They both begin to calm down and begin to talk in hushed tones and Rikki must strain to hear them. Eventually she grows tired and her thought and parents blur together, but the last clear thing she remember before drifting off to sleep is her mother saying  
"Goodbye, Terry."

_That was a weird dream._ Rikki thought woke up but shrugged it off and went to the kitchen smiling. _That's weird_ she thought her mum was always up before she was. _She must have slept in and had to rush to work. _Rikki concluded. She saw her dad sitting in the family room reading a letter, crying.

"Whats wrong, Dad?" She ask concerned. Her father rarely kept anyone see him cry. He opened his mouth but no words came out; he handed her a letter. It was addressed to her in her mum's hand writing. She took it to her room and read it.

_Dear Rikki,_

_Before you read this I want to you know that I loved, no will always love you. It's just your father and I have our differences; it's not his fault. It's mine. I wanted to tell you in person but I just couldn't bear it, to see what I was doing to you. Rikki I can;t express how truly sorry I am. Look I'm just going to come out and say it… I can;t take living in this town anymore. The only reason I stayed so long is because__ of you. You were my bright spot in this town. I needed to move on… from your father we loved each other. He stills loves me and I hate to see what this is doing to you, but I know you'll be better off with out me. I hope to see you in a few years… please don't be mad at your father. He loves you. I love you...  
_

_Goodbye for now,_

_Mom _

The letter itself was stained with tears both from her mother and Rikki's._ How could she?! _The broken-hearted eleven year old thought. He dad came in to check on her.

"Go away!" She shirked. He did, leaving her to her thoughts. Suddenly everything made sense to her everything her mom got her, then long kiss and hug; it was there goodbye. She also realized that the argument that her parents had, that she thought was a dream wasn't.

Rikki kept to herself from a while her friends asked what's was wrong, but they got no answer. She eventually to her two best friend, Stephen Andrews. They comforted her and encouraged her to talk to her dad; she listened. She and her dad eventually grew closer, but they still had trouble with money. Rikki was unable to dress in style even a bit. Eventually She her group of friends ditched her because she wasn't in style. Stephen was her last friend, but he became more popular as he got better at sports and by the time she was 14, they rarely talked. Stephen became and absolute jerk. Yet he still had a soft spot for Rikki. But call it peer pressure, call it stupid, call it what you will he abandoned her completely. He was that guy; the one who is a complete jerk and treats everyone like they're beneath him. He wasn't rich but he sure acted like it. Rikki didn't shed a tear when her dad told her they were moving. She was 16.

* * *

Rikki found out that the only person you can count on is yourself; because everyone she every loved (excluding her father) left her. She became a loner. When she went to her new school she didn't bother forming any close bonds with her classmates 'cause they'd eventually leave like everyone else. Even her friendship with Cleo, Emma, and Bella was… hesitant afraid of being hurt again. Then the was Zane Bennett. He always reminded her of Stephen, not the old Stephen, but first class jerk. Maybe that's why she hated him at first. But she found out that Zane had a softer side; the one he never let people see.

But Rikki never told anyone her deepest secrete. She still missed her mom so much. Rikki kept the letter and the necklace hidden in a draw at the back of the room. She never takes it out; it brings back too many memories but she can't get rid of it either. It's the last thing her mum gave her, the last I love you, the last present, their last goodbye.

Rikki sighed as she stared at the envelope in her hand. it was from her mom; she got on her 16 birthday but never opened it. And she never will. Rikki put the letter with the necklace and goodbye note. _Just another secrete to hid._ She thought.

_**A/N: what did you think? Who do want next Emma or Bella? Thanks so much for reading!**_


	3. Perfection

_**A/N: Emma's turn. Sorry about the long wait. This chapter was hard for me to write...**_

Perfect. This one word described the Gilbert's the perfect family, right? Well that's not so. If in facts it's this demand for being the perfect child could drive anyone to the brink. Emma was there tittering on the edge but it was her sister's disappearance and her untimely death that pushed her over.

Emma and her sister Ella who was four years older than her was as close as two sister could be of course they had their issues. Emma was a tad bit jealous being the middle child. Her baby brother got most of her parents attention and her sister got the rest. Ella said it was best; to be invisible. Emma didn't understand because she was only five but in a few years she would. Once her parents found out how she was a gifted swimmer the pressure was on, for her to be the best win every meet. She finally understood what her sister meant.

They both were pushed too far. Emma with sports and grades and Ella with musical arts and grades, whilst Elliot who was at the time didn't have to worry about any of this. THey tried telling there parents but they didn't listen, wouldn't listen, and pushed them even further if that was possible.

On the eve of Ella's sixteenth birthday she ran away without a word. The family was heartbroken. They filed a missing person's report yet there was still no sign of her. So weeks turned to months and still no sign of Ella, but sadly, for Emma, life didn't slow down at the Gilbert house, well not that much. The standers were lower slightly but not enough. With her sister gone Emma felt like she had no one to talk to, not even her best friends Cleo and Lewis. THey wouldn't understand she told herself. Their parent didn't have such high standers and Elliot was still too young to understand, hopefully he never would. Emma went to bed crying every night and she prayed for her parents to lighten, for her sister to come back, or for her to not wake up.

Then the night before Emma's fourteenth her sister returned to her home town in a body bag cause of death unrealized to the public. That was it for Emma; her one person who understood her situation, who she could go to for advice was dead. Emma wanted nothing more than to go to sleep and never wake up. Her sister's death changed so many things at the Gilbert house. Her parent were a lot less strict and the standers disappeared, but that could not undone the damage done to Emma and Ella. Emma continued to spiral and blamed her parents for sisters death because if they would've lightened up sooner she never would have run away and would have never died.

Although Her parents standers were almost completely gone Emma still put pressure on herself. To live up to her sister's reputation although her home expectations diminished the one's at school were piling up. She was aways compared to her sister ever since she was born. After her death people did lighten up but Emma always had the idea that she would never met her sister's reputation in her mind. She was told for the first years of her life and had believed it. Even after Ella's death she felt she failed her sister and her family.

One night she couldn't take it and black out. She woke up in the hospital with her parent by her side in tears. Her parents wouldn't tell her what happened and Emma didn't remember… well at least not completely. She remember, wanting to escape from the pain and loneliness. She wore bracelets the rest of the year to cover the scars that wouldn't seem to fade. Her parents apologized endlessly; she slowly began accepted.

No one asked Emma about her sister or why she always wore those bracelets even though she rarely wore any jewelry. Cleo and Lewis were there for her but Emma was already gone. Everyone tried to bring her back but she was gone; the sparkle in her eyes was gone. She spent most of her freshman year going through the motions. Not that anyone would be able to tell her grades strait A's and won almost ever swim met. Only the people closest to her were able to tell how broken she was.

The kids at school weren't much help; Mirman's constant remarks _You're so ugly why would anyone want to go out with you? You think you're so smart you f***ing b****! Ugly, fat, smart*** know it, attention seeking w****_ and the list goes on. By the end her freshman year Emma was wearing a lot of bracelets to cover the scars and was underweight; she hide this from her parents very well. Cleo and LEwis did stand up for her though. But Mirman was relentless and eventually started Lewis and Cleo too. Emma had it you could start on her but leave her friends out of it. She snapped and lasted out at Mirman.

Later Emma was seen one a secluded part of the beach her hands shaking as she dragged a blade across her wrist. It was Byron who saw her with the blade. He asked her why would she do that. And she told him some of her story. He comforted her; told her everything would be okay and that he understood. His brother went through sister went through the same thing. Her took the blade from her hand and threw it far of into the rocks. Byron helped Emma he listened and understood not as well as Ella but closer than anyone else. He tried his best to get her to eat and keep her wrist clean. He understood because he saw what his sister went through and wanted anything more than to help her and greeted not being able to. THis was his chance to help some one else.

They hungout a lot that summer and for the first in what seemed like for ever Emma smiled and the sparkle returned to her eyes. Eventually Emma regained her confidence and was slowly healing. By the time school start she was a different person more confident and pretty.

Eventually people began to forget Emma as the insecure, little girl who lost her sister; she was now she as confident and independent. Only her Cleo, Lewis and her family knew of her darkest time and never brought it up. The scars eventually faded. But there was still something that only Emma knew; there's box under her bed. It was unopened for a year in it are pills, a set of blades and a note from her sister that she never showed anyone.

_Dear Emma,_

_I'm so sorry __that I left you and Elliot in the spotlight of our parents demands; I couldn't take it anymore. I hope by running away that they will realize what their demands are doing. I'll be back soon. Stay strong; I know you can handle this better than I ever could. See you soon,sis._

_Love,_

_Ella_

**_A/N: One more chapter after and it's Bella._**


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